It's Over
by AlexForrest5
Summary: Luke and Noah's San Diego vacation turns into a nightmare when Luke is abducted by a familiar foe. A story from a few years ago that I'm now uploading here. Hope you enjoy my work - feedback is super-appreciated, including constructive criticism.
1. Chapter 1

Luke awoke slowly, consciousness returning to him bit by bit. Even as his vision cleared, he realized he was in darkness, unable to make out his surroundings. He tried to raise his hand in order to rub his temple, only to realize, with utter shock, that he couldn't move it. For a moment, his horrified thoughts returned to being paralyzed, only it was his hands this time, not his legs. _What the hell's going on?_

He wracked his brain for answers. The last thing he remembered was going out for drinks with Noah. They had a great time… maybe he drank too much, despite his assurance that they wouldn't go beyond a couple of shots? That would explain waking up all groggy, for one. But _why couldn't he move his hands?_He tried again, more fiercely, and felt ropes biting into his wrists. He glanced downward; his hands were tied to a pipe on the wall behind him.

Confused and unable to contain the terror inside him, he looked up. His eyes were starting to adapt to the darkness, and thankfully, a high window on the far end of the room allowed in a small amount of light from outside. The walls were grimy, and there were all sorts of furniture and random items strewn around. It seemed like a warehouse, or something.

The sound of a door creaking open almost made his heart stop. Not really wanting to, he slowly focused his eyes on the approaching figure. Only when it was close enough could he recognize its face, given the darkness around them. It was a face he didn't think he'd ever see again, and sure as hell didn't ever _want_to.

"Col. Mayer?"

*

Life could be ironic in the cruelest ways. Just when you thought everything couldn't be better, that you'd finally found happiness and peace, something terrible would strike and it would all be gone. Noah had had no reason to suspect that his and Luke's happiness would suffer another blow at this point.

Just a few hours ago, everything was perfect. Noah had suggested a weekend together in San Diego as a bit of R&R for the two; between college, the foundation and Noah's trip to Italy, they hadn't had a chance for that in quite a while. "And if you take any calls from Brian or your grandmother once we're out of Oakdale, I will kill you," he announced with a sexily wry smile. "I think they'll have to do without me for the weekend," Luke promised equally sexily before leaning in for a kiss.

The city was beautiful and vibrant, and Luke was in such good mood by the end of the day that he insisted they go out for drinks. "Okay, we're both underage and you don't even drink," Noah quirked his eyebrow. "You're only young once, Noah," teased Luke, easily winning the argument. So they toasted to their relationship, and Noah honestly didn't think he'd ever been happier.

Then he went to the restroom, and when he was back Luke was gone.

Noah wasn't the type to panic too quickly. At first he just searched the bar, asked everyone if they'd seen the handsome blonde guy who arrived there with him, but nobody had noticed where Luke disappeared to. He called Luke's cell, but there was no answer. He went out on the street, back to their hotel room – no sign of Luke anywhere.

And now he was panicking. He contemplated calling the Snyders, but he had to wonder what good it would do; it was getting late, they were probably all asleep by now, and what chance was there that Luke would tell them but not Noah where he was going? At this point, Noah was prepared to call the police, but Luke hadn't been missing nearly long enough for them to take it seriously. All that was really left for him to do right now was stay at their room and wait; maybe something had happened to make Luke take off and not even answer Noah's calls, maybe he'd be back with an explanation. He fixed his eyes on the wall and waited, feeling painfully helpless.

*

Luke couldn't believe his eyes, not that he wanted to. The venomous smile the Col. flashed at him increased his already considerable panic tenfold.

"I thought you were dead," Luke said slowly. "We all saw you jump off the boat in New York… the police told Noah you were dead, they found your dog tags."

"I always say that with the kind of police we have these days, it's no wonder the country's going to the dogs," the Col. replied conversationally, pulling a chair near him so he might sit down in front of Luke. He proceeded to turn on a light bulb that hung from the ceiling, and Luke's eyes stung as they had to adjust to the sudden light. "I should think you know me better than that by now, Luke - know I wouldn't just kill myself because the cops were closing in on me."

"Oh, I know you," Luke said through gritted teeth. "Better than I ever wanted to."

"Then it should have been obvious to you that it wouldn't end with me jumping off a boat," the Col. said. "Especially when I knew my son was still under your influence, that he still needed my help."

"Nice to see you haven't changed one bit," Luke spat.

"Of course, I knew they'd think I was dead," the Col. continued, as though Luke had said nothing. "That part was easy. Taking care of Noah, now, that was more complicated. I meant what I told him on that boat, he's braver and stronger than I ever thought, but unfortunately he's still corrupted… by what you did to him. And now it's time to fix that."

"How'd you even find us here?" Luke wondered, though that was not his main concern at the moment.

"I knew where you were stationed," replied the Col., "been watching you for a while. It would have been foolish to make a move in Oakdale, right under everyone's noses. So I waited until you went away, and I followed you here. Once you were alone, all I had to do was put something in your drink. I dragged you out of there, nobody asked too many questions; probably thought you were drunk. Guess you should have thought twice about underage drinking."

"Your moral perceptions never cease to amaze me, Col.," said Luke, with false bravado that he hoped wasn't painfully obvious. "What's murder compared to drinking underage, huh?"

Again, the Col. ignored Luke. "Let's get to the point, Luke. As much as I hate to admit it, I've realized that since you were the one to do this to Noah, I need your help to fix it."

"My help?" asked Luke, his jaw hanging open.

"You need to call Noah right now," said the Col., retrieving Luke's phone from a nearby desk, "And tell him it was a mistake. That this lifestyle will destroy both of you and you have to stop. _You_ don't have to actually stop, of course… once you do what you're told, I'll let you walk out of here unharmed. You can continue with your sins all you want. But you leave my son alone."

It took several moments before Luke could comprehend the Col.'s offer.

"Okay… I knew you were a murderer, Col. Mayer, but I never thought you were an idiot," Luke snarled, his fear temporarily dispelled by pure shock. "Noah and I are in love. We go on a weekend together, we have a great time, and then suddenly I disappear, only to call him and say that he - shouldn't be gay anymore? You really think he wouldn't see through that crap? And even if he didn't," he continued before the Col. could make an interruption, "It's about time you realized that he IS gay. There's nothing you or I, or anyone, can do to change that. You take me out of the picture, he's just gonna meet some other guy and – "

The rest of Luke's sentence was cut off as the Col.'s sudden, hard blow landed on his head. He bit his lip to minimize his cry of pain, a reflex meant to keep his captor from relishing that pain. That was the least he could do right now.

"My son is _not like you_," the Col. hissed as he leaned close to Luke, their faces inches away. "And if you say that again, I will kill you."

"You might as well do that, because I'm not doing what you want," Luke gritted, again playing braver than he truly felt.

"I'll give you some time to think about it," the Col. said after a beat. He stood up and turned off the light, leaving Luke in darkness once more. As the older man turned and walked away, Luke struggled to return his breathing to normal, finally realizing what predicament he was in. Tears prickled at the corners of his eyes, but he held them back, summoning no small amount of willpower. The Col. could still be watching him, and Luke was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing his weakness. He was still Luke Snyder, and his stubbornness was going to win over anything. Even this fear.

Tbc...


	2. Chapter 2

When morning came, after a torturous and utterly ineffectual night, Noah couldn't put off calling Luke's family any longer. Expectedly, they had no idea where Luke had gone, and became extremely worried once Noah admitted that neither did he. Holden told Noah he'll try to find out what he can, and they promised to let each other know as soon as they learn anything. After hanging up, Noah stared at his phone desperately, thinking he'd give anything for an incoming call from Luke to appear on the screen right now. His various attempts to call Luke during the night had, of course, been fruitless. Noah tried to force himself to calm down. If he had no way of knowing for sure where Luke was, he was just going to have to figure it out, and for that he needed to think clearly. It would be very uncharacteristic for Luke to fall off the face of the earth and ignore his boyfriend's calls, so he nixed that option. Unfortunately, that meant he had to assume something had happened to Luke. But what? Who would want to hurt or abduct Luke? He couldn't think of a single –

His insides froze. He in fact knew of someone who wanted to hurt Luke very much; someone who'd tried to kill him twice already. But Noah's father was supposed to be dead. Then again, all the confirmation he had ever received for that was his father's dog tags, which didn't really prove anything. It was surely possible to survive jumping in the water, especially for someone with extensive military training. Maybe he'd only accepted that his father had committed suicide because he so desperately – _pathetically_ - wanted to believe that man had performed some sort of noble act before dying; that he was the victim in some way.

Noah had nothing to go on, but his instincts told him, as much he didn't want to believe it, that this was the most logical explanation for Luke's disappearance. The next question was how to check if this wild theory had any credibility. After giving it some thought, he called the Snyders again, got the number at the Oakdale police station and quickly dialed it.

"Oakdale Police Department."

"Good morning," he said tensely. "I'd like to speak to Detective Montgomery-Hughes, please."

"May I ask what this is about?" the receptionist queried rather testily.

"Tell her it's Noah Mayer."

"Sir, what I mean is what would you like to – "

"Just tell her, and if she doesn't want to talk to me, that is fine."

After a moment's hesitation, the woman on the other end of the line said in a rather frosty tone, "Just a minute." As he waited, Noah pondered how nerve could get you places; it was much more Luke's style than his own, but he was so worried at the moment that any notion of politeness was discarded.

Eventually Margo picked up. "Noah?"

"Hi, Margo," he greeted awkwardly, not really sure how to broach this topic without it seeming absurd, or even why he was addressing a cop he barely knew by her first name. Then again, his slight familiarity with her was what made him hope for her help in the first place. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I could really use your help… something's happened." He took a deep breath; she remained quiet. "Margo, I… think my father could still be alive."

"And what would make you think that?" she asked, in a tone of voice not unlike the one the receptionist had used with him.

He sighed, despite having expected this reaction. "I know this sounds crazy, but Luke Snyder, my boyfriend, he went missing last night. I think my father could have something to do with it."

"Your father is dead, Mayer," she said flatly. "And I'm sorry about Luke, but until he's been missing for 24 hours, there isn't really much we can – "

"He tried to kill Luke," Noah persisted. "Twice. And what proof do we have that he's really dead?"

"You're reaching for straws," Margo replied, though she sounded a little less certain. "This is the police's work, not yours. I understand that you're upset – "

"You know Luke," Noah cut her off again. "You know his family. If something's happened to him and we don't find out, they might never see him again. Me neither."

Margo sighed, and there was a pause, which Noah took to be a good thing. He added, "Please, Margo. I just need you to check if there's any indication that my father could still be alive, especially if he's been near San Diego. That's where I am right now."

"You're definitely right about one thing – this sounds crazy," she snapped, "But I guess I can make a few phone calls."

Noah thanked her and gave her his number. His wait was not a long one – which was fortunate, since sitting around waiting was about to do his head in. Margo called back within the hour, seething with rage.

"Apparently, the FBI doesn't think there's much need to share basic information with the police," she stated, thoroughly pissed. "I'd still be yelling at that guy if I didn't know I had to call you back."

"What did he tell you?" asked Noah, who couldn't really care less about quarrels among law enforcement personnel at the moment.

"Your father was spotted in Oakdale a few days ago," she curtly informed him. "As it turns out, they _didn't_ _think it was relevant_. Thought he was just looking for a way to flee the country, like he did in New York."

Noah struggled to maintain a level head, as this information would have been enough to shock him senseless were he not completely focused on Luke right now. "What else?"

"Well, they've been theorizing on where he could have retreated to, based on everything we know about him – contacts, history… they've compiled a list of places to check out."

"What places?". Margo protested initially, but relented at Noah's insistence, and he began scribbling down addresses. His heart missed a beat when a warehouse in San Diego was mentioned.

"Like I said, I still think your theory is a bit out there," Margo said, "but when I told them that someone your father almost murdered went missing in San Diego, they couldn't ignore it. They still want proof that he's actually missing, of course, but he told me they'll send in people as soon as pos – "

Noah was barely taking in her words at this point. "Alright, I've got it."

"Mayer!" she said suddenly; he realized his overeager tone gave him away. "You are not to go there on your own, do you understand? Your father's a convicted murderer and you're in no position to be going after him. Let the police and the FBI handle this."

"Thanks, Margo," he breathed and hung up, already scrambling towards the door.

*

As the hours passed, Luke felt more and more like he was in a struggle to hold on to his own sanity. The Col. had not brought him any water since he woke up, and he was not stupid enough to ask for any. He'd taken care to tie the ropes around Luke's hands tightly enough that Luke's attempts to fumble out of them were useless. He wondered if this was the Col.'s way of punishing him for loving Noah. Then again, he reminded himself, the Col. didn't blame Luke for loving Noah – not _just_ that; he blamed Luke for "converting" Noah in the first place, and now thought Luke could reverse what he'd supposedly done.

The Col. returned several times through the night, reiterating his earlier offer in a completely matter-of-fact voice. Luke flatly told him to go to hell time after time, and though he feared the Col. would attack him again, that didn't happen. He began wondering how long it would be before the Col. just killed him. However long it would take for him to lose his patience with Luke, it would surely take a lot longer for them to be found. Luke was certain that Noah was worried sick and looking for him everywhere, but no one even knew Col. Mayer was still alive. What could he hope for? Someone randomly wandering into this warehouse and saving him?

He took comfort in the rays of sunlight eventually pouring in through the window. If it was morning, he wondered, he'd really been here for hours; it didn't just feel like it.

His thoughts were interrupted when the Col. walked back in. "I have to give you some credit, son," he said ponderingly as he sat down. "I didn't think you cared that much about Noah. I suppose you really do believe in what you're doing, don't you?"

"So nice that you've caught on," Luke said with a fake smile. He knew it would be pointless to stall, nothing he did could buy him enough time to survive. He might as well stick it to the Col. as much as he could.

"Well, you had your chance," the Col. sighed, and as he eyed a gun that lay on a shelf across the room, whatever semblance of hope that had been left in Luke's heart died. "If you'd just talked to Noah, he would have listened to you… it's like he said, _you_ don't lie to him. It's a pity that you couldn't make the right choice, couldn't make it easier for everyone: you, me and him."

"Yeah, no one's as good at making the right choice as you are, Col.," Luke snarked. And then, suddenly, the sarcasm slipped away and his eyes hardened. "But understand this – I might not be able to make you pay for what you've done, what you're still doing, but someone will eventually. And no matter what you do, Noah will never be your son again. He hates you… as well he should."

The Col.'s face burned, and even as a bitter smile crept across it, Luke felt immense satisfaction for a moment there. "We'll see who's right in the end," the Col. deadpanned. "Well, I will, at any rate."

The Col. stood up, and though Luke wanted very much to close his eyes, not to have to watch that triumphant expression, he refused to let the Col. know that he was scared. He compromised by casting his eyes downward, but the Col.'s voice was not so easy to block out.

"I should have killed you a long time ago, but your parents and dear old Donovan had to interrupt," he needled, and Luke tried to ignore the knowledge that he won't ever see his family again. Or Noah. "Fortunately, that won't happen this time. You will never hurt my son again, Luke… it's over."

And then a different voice called out, "Too right, it is."

Luke lifted his head so quickly that he was dizzy. His gaze traveled beyond the Col. and again, he couldn't believe what he was seeing, his breath caught in his chest as he stared at what had to be a hallucination. Noah stood there, pointing the Col.'s own gun at him, a darkness in his eyes Luke had never seen.

His skin crawled, his own eyes momentarily snapping shut, as the shot rang out. He was almost afraid to open them, but he did. They fell upon the Col., lying on the floor with blood pouring from the bullet hole in his forehead, dead.

And then upon Luke's boyfriend, still holding the gun, his face contorted with a mixture of a thousand different emotions. But not regret.

Tbc...


	3. Chapter 3

Mere moments ago, he was completely focused. His mind was clear, all his energy and determination focused on a single task: finding Luke. Then he did find him; realizing what he had to do, he picked up the gun, pulled the trigger, and time froze. For a moment that seemed to last forever, he stared at Col. Mayer's lifeless form, unable to move, unable to think, unable to feel.

"Should have remembered what you taught me," he whispered. "Never leave your weapon unattended."

He has killed his own father.

And then, suddenly, Noah's gaze fell on Luke – tied up, hurt, having clearly gone through a terrible ordeal. His wrist went limp and he carelessly released his grip on the gun, the sound of it hitting the floor seemingly echoing a lot louder than it should have. The paralysis he'd experienced melted away as quickly as it had come.

Noah strode over to Luke, the horror of realizing what had happened to his boyfriend the only thing on his mind now. "Luke, oh my God…" he said shakily, quickly getting to work on the length of rope around Luke's hands. His father tied a strong knot, but Noah had learned the same tricks and was able to undo it within seconds.

Luke used his renewed freedom of movement to throw his arms around Noah as tightly as if his life depended on it. "Noah…" he breathed, obviously stunned, "I don't understand, how did you find me?"

"We can talk about that later," Noah said, gladly folding Luke into his arms with no intention to let go any time soon. "Luke," he pulled back so he could look him in the face, "Are you okay?"

"I am," Luke promised, nodding. "Well, I am now, that's for sure," he added with, unbelievably enough, a smile on his face – the barest of smiles, that was still enough to pull Noah from the deepest pits of desperation.

They clung to each other, and a minute or two passed by in silence. Noah struggled with the knowledge of what Luke had gone through, feeling broken and guilty. "Luke, I'm so sorry…" he whispered into the other man's shoulder, on the verge of tears.

"It's okay." Luke sounded pained and fragile, like he might cry, too. It was clear to Noah that neither of them was really okay, that _this_ sure as hell wasn't okay, but he pushed that knowledge to the back of his mind. For now, he needed them to stay in each other's arms and forget everything else. Just for a little while.

*

Margo had apparently done her job, because they were eventually joined by the police and the FBI in the warehouse. Each of them described the night's events to the officers from his perspective. Luke felt a chill down his spine when they reached the last relevant bit – Noah shooting Col. Mayer. He hadn't spared a thought to how this would appear to the police, perhaps because he hadn't had the strength to deal with it. He was immensely relieved when they seemed to accept Noah's version of events. Luke was also offered medical attention, but stated truthfully that he'd rather just go home as soon as possible.

When Luke had called his family to let them know he was okay, it sounded like his mother might have a breakdown right there on the phone. She promised to rebook them on a flight back to Illinois that very day. He reminisced a bit sadly on how their romantic getaway was completely destroyed, but getting home was really the most important thing to him at the moment.

Noah was unusually quiet – which was saying something, considering he wasn't exactly a chatterbox to begin with – on the way back to the hotel. As they returned to their room, showered, got something to eat and went back to pack their things, they talked very little, and everything they did say was unrelated to what had happened. Luke knew Noah was extremely troubled at the moment, to say the least, but didn't want to pressure him; that was one mistake he was definitely not going to repeat.

The silence between them continued over the flight and on the way from the airport to the Snyder farm, which started to concern Luke. _Don't say anything_, he told himself over and over again. _Give him time._ Their arrival was expectedly met with bone-crushing hugs and endless questions of whether Luke was okay. He thought he noticed Lily about to ask him for a more detailed account of what had happened, but stop after a meaningful look from Holden. She practically smothered Noah while kissing him on the cheek and thanking him for saving her son's life, and Luke could tell his boyfriend was feeling distinctly uncomfortable. Though they had some tea and cookies at his grandmother's insistence, Luke then stated that he thought it would be best for them go up to bed. Noah wordlessly followed him, and even as Luke glanced back at Emma, it was clear that the rules were being put on hold tonight.

As they changed, Luke was getting desperate for Noah to say something, anything. He'd settle for Noah shouting that he hates the world and breaking a lamp, or something. But the silent treatment continued. He forgot about that, though, when they got into bed and he felt Noah's arms wrap lovingly around him.

"Good night," Noah murmured into Luke's hair, and as far as he was concerned, these two words would do until morning.

"Good night."

*

The next morning, Luke's beside clock informed him that it was nearly ten when he woke up. He was tremendously grateful that it was Sunday. Thankfully, his sleep had not been disturbed by any nightmares about the warehouse, though he was pretty sure those would come eventually. Sleepily rubbing the crusts out of his eyes, he glanced backwards at Noah, who was still fast asleep. He gently slipped out of Noah's embrace and off the bed.

Fifteen minutes later, Luke entered the kitchen to find a rather bizarre sight: the table was completely set, yet no one was present except his father, who sat down reading the paper. Upon hearing Luke enter, he put it down and offered his son a small smile.

"Morning. How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Morning… I'm good," Luke replied, taking a seat before Holden. "Well, I've been better, but since I didn't spend the night tied up on the floor of some warehouse, I'm not complaining."

This bit of morbid humor earned him a slightly disapproving glare from his father, but frankly, he was the only one Luke could use it with. "So, uh… what is this about?" he wondered, gesturing with his head towards the empty seats around the table.

"We thought it would be a good idea to have a family breakfast today," Holden explained, "but obviously, we wanted to wait to you, or the whole exercise would be pretty pointless. Is Noah up yet? We could wait for him, too."

"Nah, he's still asleep and I think he'd feel pretty bad about holding breakfast for that long. We should eat and just save him something. Besides," he added with a slight tilt of his head, "I'm not sure he'd be too keen on a family breakfast right now, if you know what I mean."

The look in Holden's eyes clarified that he did, and Luke was grateful that his father always _got_ him that way. Holden went to get everyone, and once they'd gone through the routine of hugs, kisses and questions about Luke's well-being once more – he appreciated their concern a great deal, but couldn't help feeling awkward – he was happy to just enjoy small talk and Emma's cooking. When Lily wondered how Noah was doing, Luke did his best to give a minimal reply and steer the conversation away. He noticed the tension between his parents, too – they probably didn't have breakfast together too often these days – but for once, he didn't dwell on their marital problems. He had more pressing issues on his mind at the moment.

Not really in the mood for anything, he went to watch some reruns on TV, Faith and Natalie joining him after a while. This provided welcome distraction for a couple of hours, but he eventually decided to go find Noah. On his way upstairs, thinking Noah might still be there, he spotted him through the window. Noah was sitting on the grass before the Snyder pond, looking out at the horizon.

After the briefest of hesitations, Luke exited the house and tentatively made his way over to his boyfriend. "Hey," he smiled, gripping Noah's shoulder as to both show affection and help himself into a sitting position as well. Noah smiled back, though rather thinly, before returning his eyes to the water. "You sure slept in today. Or were you tossing and turning all night?"

"I honestly didn't think I'd sleep at all," Noah admitted. "I kept replaying yesterday in my mind, kept seeing my father's dead body … I thought it was just going to haunt me from now on. But then I thought about you, lying next to me, and I realized he can never hurt you again. And I slept well after that," he said, turning to flash Luke a warmer, wider smile.

Luke thought he was probably blushing. _Damn you, Mayer, for making me out to be an eight-year-old girl._ Though this comment of Noah's had deeply affected him, he had a feeling they had not said everything yet. "Listen, Noah…" he started awkwardly, not really knowing the right words to say. "I really wish you hadn't had to go through that. No one should have to kill their own father, no one deserves to be put in that position."

"I'm sorry that I had to do it," said Noah, his voice somewhat distant, his eyes still fixed on the pond. "But I'm not sorry that I did. Not because he deserved to die, even though he did… because he was about to kill you. And I would do the same thing a million times over."

Luke honestly didn't know what to say, but it appeared Noah wasn't done. "I just wish there was more I could do, I wish I could make everything right."

"What do you mean?"

"Luke, my father – _my father_ – pushed you down a hill and put you in a wheelchair for months. He tried to kill you with a syringe. He kidnapped and almost shot you. No matter what I do, I can't take that pain away."

"Noah," Luke said firmly, taking hold of the other man's arm. "We've had this conversation. Heck, everyone's had this conversation with you. You are not your father, and the things he did are not your fault."

"Doesn't change the fact that if you hadn't met me, you wouldn't have gone through any of that," Noah muttered. "And it kills me, Luke, because you're the last person who deserves to suffer that way."

Rather desperate, Luke tried a different approach. "How about you look at it this way," he said, "Yes, your father put me in a wheelchair, and _you_ got me out of it. Not just by helping me with these stupid exercises – you gave me hope, you helped me believe that I could walk again. I wouldn't have if it wasn't for you. Your father kidnapped me in San Diego, and _you_ came for me and saved my life. Did you even stop to think about that?"

"What about the times that _I_ hurt you, Luke?" Noah's voice started to shake. "I married a girl I barely knew to help her, and was willing to hide our relationship to do that. I blamed you for my father killing himself, which is even more ridiculous now that we know he didn't really do that. I enlisted after you begged me to stay. Do you really deserve a boyfriend like that?"

"Noah!" Luke protested. "Look at me. Please." At long last, Noah tore his eyes away from the water to meet Luke's. "You need to listen. We've both gone through terrible things, apart and together. We never let them break us, and we're not going to do that now. We were strong enough to make it through everything, Noah, that's what counts."

A quiet moment passed between them, during which Luke did his best to convey the truthfulness of what he'd just said to Noah through the look in his eyes. And then Noah captured his lips in a searing kiss, one that was filled with emotion and intensity and need and want and Luke honestly thought he might pass out before Noah pulled away. He didn't mind in the slightest, though.

When they did eventually pull away, grinning ever so slightly at each other, there was another moment of silence before Luke said quietly, "Just know that whatever you need, we're here for you. Despite everything, despite the fact that he was definitely not on my Christmas list, and that it saved my life, I'm sorry you had to kill him."

"He was a monster," Noah said without a hint of doubt or hesitation. "And you're the man I love. I'm just glad I'm not afraid to say either of these things anymore."

Luke felt his heart flutter in his chest. The literal and figurative darkness of the warehouse and Col. Mayer was gone; the literal and figurative light of the sun and Noah's dreamy eyes was all he could see.

"So am I."

- End


End file.
